How do midwives in Slovenia view their professional status?

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the study was to explore Slovenian midwives' views of their professional status. The influence of participants' educational background on their views was also examined, since higher education is related to professionalism.Design: This was a quantitative descriptive survey, using postal data collection. The questionnaire comprised of six elements crucial for professionalism -three elements distinctive of "old" professionalism (power, ethics, specific knowledge) and three characteristics of "new" professionalism (reflective practice, inter-professional collaboration and partnership with users).Participants: A total of 300 midwives who were registered in a national register of nurses and midwives at the time of the study. The response rate was 50.7% (152 returned the questionnaire). Participants that were on a probationary period were excluded, leaving 128 questionnaires for analysis (43%). Some 40.9% participants had secondary midwifery education, 56.7% had higher midwifery education and only few (2.4%) finished postgraduate education. Findings:The majority of participants did not consider midwifery to be a specific profession. Midwives with secondary education were more likely to consider practical skills to be important than theoretical midwifery knowledge. In general midwives did not feel enabled to practice autonomously; and this caused them to face ethical dilemmas when aiming to fulfil women's wishes. All participants with midwifery secondary school education thought that obstetrics jeopardizes midwifery scope of practice, but only half of the BSc participants thought this. One fifth of all participants estimated that midwifery is also threatened by nursing. The respondents reported feeling a lack of control over their professional activity and policy making, however the majority of midwives claimed that they were willing to take on more responsibility for independent practice.Key conclusions: Slovenian midwifery cannot be considered to be a profession yet. It faces several hindrances, due to its historical development. Implications for practice:In order to develop a specific professional identity for midwives, the content and structure of education should be analysed and changed in order to improve socialisation and professionalism. In clinical settings, the scope of midwifery practice and responsibilities, as defined by EU directives, should be agreed by all professional groups.

Connecting Status and Professional Learning: An Analysis of Midwives Career Using the Place© Model

“…Others have previously ascribed similar professional attributes such as: an expert esoteric body of knowledge which is profession specific; autonomy that helps to set the parameters for a discrete area of practice, thereby assigning social power to the profession and ethical considerations [6]. However, more recently, Mivšek et al [7] have highlighted three additional characteristics of professions: interprofessional collaboration, partnership with user and reflective practice. The ICM advocates for all countries to support midwives to promote midwifery as an autonomous profession, in order to optimize the care that they can provide for women and their families.…”

Slovenian midwifery professionalization: Perception of midwives and related health professions

“…Over time all occupations strive to become professions as they are associated with high moral status, being respected, have the expertise, and social prestige 1 . While traditional professions represent the classical patriarchal values of power and self-sufficiency, ‘new’ professions are based on democratic professionalism 2 , promoting equality and partnership in the expert–patient relationship, reflective practice, and inter-professional collaboration.…”

“…Our study focused on the opinion of nurses regarding the professionalism of midwives since, in Slovenia, their fields of work are not clearly defined. Historically 1 , 20 , nurses and obstetricians are competitors with midwives in pre-and post-natal care.…”

“…Mivšek et al 1 had previously analyzed how midwives see their professional status, which is closely connected with the perception and recognition of related professional groups. We compared midwives’ views of Slovenian midwifery professionalization with clinical colleagues (nurses and obstetricians) who work with them.…”

Ebelerin Profesyonel Değerleri Ölçeğinin Geliştirilmesi

“…Ebelik mesleği, bilim ve sanatın birleştiği, ruh ve etik değerler üzerine temellenmiş profesyonel bir sağlık disiplinidir (6). Bir mesleğin profesyonelleşmesi için, o mesleğin toplum tarafından kabul görmesi gerekmektedir (7). Bu meslek, Türk kültüründe itibar görmüş, kadınlar için emek veren tanrıçalar olarak uzun yıllar kabul edilmiştir (8).…”